Thursday, May 28, 2009

12:27 PM

U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin acknowledged this morning that a single-payer public health care system, which she has long advocated for, is unlikely to be part of a fast-tracked health care reform bill this summer.

Nonetheless, the Madison Democrat said she is hopeful that a public option will be part of a health care package currently under negotiation in Congress. Baldwin held a press conference on health care in the Capitol following a roundtable discussion with insurance, health and labor leaders.

"If I had a magic wand, I'd start with the single-payer plan," Baldwin said while acknowledging that the provision is likely off the table. She said that President Obama supports some form of public option to cover uninsured and underinsured Americans and said that a federal mandate could be part of the discussion as well.

"Everyone must participate so that we do share risk," Baldwin said.

Baldwin also stressed the need for to states to retain some flexibility in dealing with health care. She lauded Wisconsin's SeniorCare program for its cost-effectiveness and efficiency and said states must continue to be able to innovate to serve as laboratories for national health care.

"Our experiment here with SeniorCare in Wisconsin can insure more people at lower costs and compete fairly with private plans," Baldwin said, knocking the Bush administration for efforts to eliminate the program in favor of Medicare Part D.

Baldwin said advocates and the American public in general are starting the latest debate on health care reform at a greater level of consensus than ever before and said she was "very hopeful" that the bill would get done this year. The House Subcommittee on Health, of which Baldwin is a member, hopes to have a discussion draft done by mid-June, and Baldwin said the current pace would move the bill through Congress by the end of July.

"I expect the next few weeks in Congress to be really monumental," Baldwin said.